Restraining jacket



Jan. 2, 1968 B. RENTSCH, JR

RESTRAINING JACKET Filed Aug. 9, 1965 SAMUEL B. RENTSCH,JR.

INVENTOR.

mm w

FIG. 2

United States Patent 3,361,132 RESTRAINING JACKET Samuel B. Rentsch, Jr., Glastonbury, Conn., assignor to Clark Associates, Inc., Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Aug. 9, 1965, Ser. No. 478,135 4 Claims. (Cl. 128-134) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The invention relates to a restraining jacket and, more particularly, to a restraining jacket having a novel holding means that can be easily fastened and unfastened and, yet, resists any attempt of a patient to release himself.

In the medical treatment of certain patients, particularly children, it is not only diflicult but dangerous to perform minor operations and examinations. The movement of the child and the flaying of his arms and legs may cause him to inflict injury on himself and the persons treating him. In the past, jackets have been evolved to prevent movements of patients but, in most cases, they have been cumbersome and complicated and, as a matter of fact, presented certain psychological difiiculties. A child wrapped in one of the prior art straight jackets was apt to suffer a traumatic experience with long-term results. These and other difficulties experienced with the prior art devices have been obviated in a novel manner by the present invention.

It is, therefore, an outstanding object of the invention to provide a restraining jacket which is simple in construction and yet capable of operating effectively to prevent undue movement of a patient during medical treatment.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a restraining jacket which is entirely washable and which contains no complicated parts to collect dirt and the like.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of a restraining jacket particularly intended for children which has the psychological advantage that there are no complicated fastening straps and the like to scare the child.

It is another object of the instant invention to provide a restraining jacket which is very rapid in operation and yet can be just as readily removed.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a restraining jacket which is inexpensive in construction and which is capable of a long life of useful service.

With these and other objects in view, as will be appareent to those skilled in the art, the invention resides in the combination of parts set forth in the specification and covered by the claims appended hereto.

The character of the invention, however, may be best understood by reference to one of its structural forms as illustrated by the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a restraining jacket made in accordance with the principles of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the jacket, and

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the jacket in assembled condition.

Referring first to FIG. 1, wherein are best shown the general features of the invention, the restraining jacket, indicated generally by the reference numeral 10, is shown in use with a young patient 11 who is reposing on a bed 12 and being examined by a physician 13.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, it can be seen that the restraining jacket consists of a main body 14 which is of a generally trapezoidal form and has two long edges 15 and 16, a large end edge 17, and a short end edge 18.

3,361,132 Patented Jan. 2, 1968 Extending away from the edge 17 are two shoulder straps 19 and 21. Located in the central lower portion of the main body is an access opening 22 normally covered by a flap 23. Extending along the edge 15 on the side of the main body 14 is a series of male fastening means 24 While, extending along the edge 16 on the side facing away from the observer is a series of female fastening means 25. All of the fastening means consist of elongated strips of a substance known as Velcro manufactured by the Velcro Corporation, 681 5th Avenue, New York, N.Y., shown and described in Us. Patents No. 2,717,437, No. 3,009,235, and No. 3,154,837. The male fastenings 24 consist of strips of very small plastic hooks, while the female fastening means 25 consist of strips of plastic fibre in a padded or fluffy condition. It is the nature of these elements that the hooks of the male fastenings 24 engage and become tangled with the fibre of the female fastening means 25 and the two portions are held together securely against lateral movement relative to one another. However, a direct pull at a right angle to the surface separates the two easily.

The shoulder strap 19 carries a similar male fastening means 26, while a similar male fastening means 27 is located on the shoulder strap 21. The surface of the main body 14 facing away from the observer carries two female fastening means 28 and 29 to cooperate, respectively, with the fastening means 26 and 27 on occasion.

The use of the apparatus will now be readily understood, in view of the above description. The restraining jacket 10 is placed on a bed 12 and the patient 11 is laid on the surface facing the observer in FIG. 2. The portion of the main body 14 bearing the edge 16 is carried over to the front of the patient and the edge 15 is overlapped over it, so that the male fastening means 24 contact the female fastening means 25 and the two are held securely together from their very nature. The shoulder straps 19 and 21 are passed over the shoulder of the patient so that the male fastening means 26 and 27 make contact with the female fastening means 28 and 29 and the two are held securely together. It should be noted, as shown clearly in FIG. 3, that the overlapping of the various fastening means varies from one end of the body to another depending on the amount of taper in the body of the patient. It is the nature of the Velcro fastening means that, even if the slightest contact is made between the two portions of the fastening means, a secure locking results. It is diflicult, if not impossible, to move them relative to one another in the plane of the pads, so that the patient enveloped within the jacket cannot release the fastening means, no matter how much he struggles within the envelope. However, from the exterior, the nurse or doctor can pull at right angles to the plane of the fastening means and patches and release the jacket quickly with one stroke from top to bottom. The access opening 22 with its flap 23 is available for spinal injections and the like.

As is evident from a study of the above description, it is clear that the restraining jacket was particularly intended for use in restraining children who need medical attention. The jacket can be applied to patients in a few seconds, which is a saving in valuable time when it is necessary to treat injury quickly. It eliminates the problem of sending for more assistance in connection with restraining the patient, there are no loose strings or straps that might get in the way of the doctors treating the patient, nor are there any hardware or zippers that cause difficulty in application. The jacket can be applied or removed from the patient in either the standing or prone position. Its construction is simple, thus contrasting with other types of restraining garments which have been considerably more complicated and require more time to apply. In addition, there is a psychological advantage in that the child is fascinated by the Velcro fastening means and, since there are no straps or hardware involved, he does not feel that he is being unduly restrained. As a matter of fact, he feels that he would be able to open up the jacket any time he wanted to, although, of course, this is not true. Furthermore, the use of the elongated Velcro strips gives a considerable degree of adjustability to various shapes and sizes of patients without difiiculty. The fact that there is no metal in the garment means that it can be readily washed, there is no rusting problem, nor is ironing necessary. Furthermore, the article can be rolled up or folded into a very compact package for ease of storage and portability.

It is obvious that minor changes may be made in the form and construction of the invention without departing from the material spirit thereof. It is not, however, desired to confine the invention to the exact form herein shown and described, but it is desired to include all such as properly come within the scope claimed.

The invention having been thus described, what is claimed as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A restraining jacket, comprising (a) a main body consisting of a quadrilateral flexible sheet,

(b) male fastening means extending along one long side of the body on one surface of the sheet, the male fastening means consisting of a large number of small plastic hooks, and

() female fastening means extending along the other long side of the body on the other surface of the sheet, the female fastening means consisting of loose padding of plastic fibers in which the hooks can become entangled.

2. A restraining jacket as recited in claim 1, wherein one short side of the body having two spaced shoulder straps, the ends of the shoulder straps and one of the surfaces of the sheet being provided with cooperating male and female fastening means.

3. A restraining jacket as recited in claim 1, wherein a portion of the body remote from the sides is provided with an opening to provide access to the body of a patient enveloped in the jacket.

4. A restraining jacket as recited in claim 2, wherein the fastening means consist of a plurality of elongated strips, each of which extends lengthwise in a direction at a right angle to the long side of the body with which it is associated, so that contact of each male fastening means may be made with its female fastening means even when a tapered body is wrapped in the jacket.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,964,271 6/1934 ODwyer 128-134 2,292,600 8/1942 Baum 2-69 2,940,443 6/1960 Baker 128-134 3,034,132 5/1962 Landsberger et al. 2-69.5 3,054,400 9/1962 Lizio 128163 ADELE M. EAGER, Primary Examiner. 

